My previous 727 was all mahogany. I didn't like the weight, so I was hoping for a guitar that was on the lighter side, and sure enough the koa is much lighter than the mahogany and considerably more resonant. A little pricey, but worth every penny! I'll put some more pics up when I'm done gawking. EDIT: Moar uploaded

holy FU@K! That's pretty awesome. One of the best looking Carvins I've seen anywhere.
Mine's supposed to be done at the end of September. I got a 5pc koa and maple neck, but kept the body as mahogany.
Amazing guitar. Congrats.

I must say, this is one of, if not THE nicest 727 I've ever seen. Your a genius for thinking of putting a blackburst over the spalt. Made it sooooo beautiful. I tried to think of another word to say that wasn't so lame, but I couldn't think of anything, that's how awesome it is.

Thanks all. I chose the koa mainly for its weight and tone. My mahogany 727 was uncomfortably heavy, but I still wanted something relatively warm and resonant.

I looked at doing an oiled finish over the spalt like the N4, but the figuring doesn't really "pop". Carvin recommends a gloss coating for spalt. Then I saw this, and thought the burst added a nice bit of contrast compared to uniform spalt tops I'd seen.

The birdseye fingerboard was actually inspired by some of the Vik guitars I've seen here. But as much as I'm in awe of the Viks, they're just out of my price range. The board is tung-oiled which, paired with the SS frets, is pure butter.

I recently acquired an RGD2127Z. My plan was to test both, and keep one. As nice as the RGD is, it's just not quite as nice to me as the Carvin, so I'll be sending it back and keeping this girl.